Percy Without Annabeth
by heliliesromp
Summary: What if Percy and Annabeth had never met? What if Percy had met someone else instead? When Percy arrives at Camp Half-Blood for the first time, he meets Sophie, a fiery daughter of Zeus. Instead of Annabeth, it's Sophie who journeys on quests with Percy. This story takes place the year before TLO, and Percy and Sophie are together at Goode. Of course, adventure and romance ensues.
1. Chapter 1

PERCY'S POV

_Finally_, I thought. Sophie had just walked into hallway at Goode High School. She had just walked into _my _school. This had been a dream of mine for so long that it was almost unfathomable that it was finally coming true. Sophie and I. Together at Goode. For the whole year. She was my best friend in the entire universe, and had been ever since I wandered into Camp Half-Blood five years ago. As I watched her walk towards me, beaming, a smile broke across my face. When she finally reached me, my face was stretched so much it hurt, but I didn't care. She was here, and that was all that mattered. "Hey seaweed brain," she said.

"What's up, Sparks?" I replied. She laughed that laugh of hers, tossing her head back and letting a waterfall of auburn hair fall down her back.

"You're still gonna stick to that nickname, huh? Even though we're not at camp anymore?" I turned so that I was standing next to her and put my arm around her. We started walking down the hallway together.

"As long as you still call me 'seaweed brain', I'm gonna call you 'sparks'. Sorry, that's just how it is."

"Well then I'd better get used to it, 'cause I'm never giving up 'seaweed brain'. It fits you too well."

"Damn." I laughed as well, and we continued towards what seemed to be her new locker. As we walked, I could feel eyes on us. People always stared at Sophie. With her long, wavy auburn hair, her slightly bronzed, blemish-free skin, and her large brown eyes flecked with gold, she was easily the prettiest girl I had ever seen. But there was something else about her, an intimidating aspect. She walked with perfect posture, with her chest out and her hips swinging (I'm pretty sure she did this last thing because she liked the attention it brought her.) She strutted with confidence wherever she went, and those eyes were always filled with determination. When we reached her locker, she broke apart from me and spun her lock. I leaned casually against the locker next to hers and pulled out my schedule. "Hand over your schedule, Soph," I said. She reached into her backpack, pulled it out, and handed it to me. I scanned it quickly. "Okay, so we have English, Bio, and World History together, plus we have the same lunch."

"Perfect," she said. After she got her stuff, she slammed her locker shut and turned towards me. "So… does Rachel still go here?" She looked disdainful when she said this. It was no secret Sophie wasn't Rachel's biggest fan. Luckily, we wouldn't be running into her anytime soon.

"No, she dropped out a little while back."

"Oh… why'd she drop out?" Sophie asked. I shrugged.

"I don't really know. I guess she didn't fit in too well around here." It was clear Sophie was relieved that she wouldn't be seeing Rachel around.

"Hmm," she murmured. I laughed.

"What?" She asked defensively.

"Nothing… it's just you look so happy that Rachel isn't here." I replied. Color rushed to her face.

"Whatever, seaweed brain. I have to go to homeroom." She turned on her heel and started to walk down the hallway.

"Wait, Soph!" She gave no recognition to my cries. "Do you even know where it is?"

"I'll find it!" She shouted behind her. I considered running after her, but I knew she would just turn me away again at her homeroom door. All I could do was shake my head and chuckle.

…

I met Sophie at her locker after second period. As she rounded the corner, I saw that she was talking to someone, laughing even. From the looks of him, I guessed it was John Lockland. John was the captain of the lacrosse team, and was known to be one of the best-looking guys in school. They appeared to be re-living a funny moment, because they were both talking and laughing, Sophie gesticulating wildly. When they finally reached me, I was already a little angry at this guy. He was a big player, and I didn't want Soph getting too involved with him. I wasn't about to let her get hurt (not that that happened very often with her feistiness). Their laughter wound down as they stopped in front of me. She smiled at me, and I felt a little better. "Hey Perce."

"Hey Sparks," I said, trying to assert my closeness with her by using her nickname. "How were your first two classes at Goode?"

"Really good, actually. I met John here in Geometry, and our teacher played this video-" at this point she and John broke down into giggles again.

"It was so funny, man," John said through fits of laughter. I was doing my best not make a face.

"Oh really? What happened?" Sophie managed to recover, and she wiped away a tear. She was laughing so hard she was actually crying. For some reason, it made me kind of angry that she already had an inside joke with this guy. _I'm probably just really protective of Soph. Yeah, that's all, _I thought. Sophie continued the story.

"The acting was super fake, and at one point this one guy goes 'math is just super!'" She laughed again, and I tried my best to laugh along with her. It sounded a little funny I guess.

"Oh, that does sound funny!" She gave me a weird look after I said this, like she was skeptical of my statement, but she let it lie. "Anyways," I continued. "The bell for third period is about to ring, so we'd better get going Soph."

"Oh, okay." She turned to John. "I'll see you tomorrow?" He smiled at her.

"Yeah." At that, he walked away. I have to admit, I was relieved. She turned to her locker and opened it, putting her stuff away. I leaned up against the bank of lockers.

"So, how'd you meet that clown?" I asked, trying my best to act nonchalant. She laughed.

"I met him in Geometry. We got partnered up to do some of the exercises, and it turned out he's pretty nice. You don't seem to like him, though." As usual, her blunt attitude caught me a bit off-guard, though you'd think I'd be used to it by now.

"Well, it's just that he's kind of a player. I just don't want him to hurt you."

"Come on seaweed brain. You know you don't have to worry about me. I can handle myself." Having retrieved all she needed for our next class, she slammed her locker door shut. "Don't be jealous, Perce. It's not a good look on you." I felt color rush to my cheeks and my ears. _Damn it_, I thought. _Now she'll know I'm embarrassed. _ After all, Soph knew that my tell for being embarrassed is the reddening of my ears.

"I'm not jealous!" I said, though my voice came out a little high-pitched. She laughed.

"Don't worry! It's not like I'm gonna date him or anything! We're just friends." I tried to regain my composure and draped my arm around her.

"Alright, alright," I said. And with that we walked off towards English.

…

SOPHIE'S POV

After such a long time being at different schools, it was great being with Percy all year-round. He was my best friend, seeing him everyday made me happier than ever. And I had to admit, it was a bit nice having him be all protective and jealous like that. Things had been kind of… complicated over the last few months, and it gave me comfort to know that his spell on Calypso's island didn't change his feelings. We hadn't talked about it much since then, mostly because I really didn't want to know about his time with another girl, never mind one whose beauty had been set in history. It was confusing, but something had certainly changed between us. My heart beat a little bit faster (okay, a lot faster) when he put his arm around me, a gesture that I used to just take as friendly, I found myself thinking about him more often, and wondering whether he thought about me too. But it was impossible. We were best friends, nothing more, and I couldn't lose him, not again. So I pushed these thoughts to the back of my head. As we walked home after my first day at school, we chatted. "You know," I started. "I really like Goode. It's a nice change of pace from San Francisco. And, you know, not constantly being chased by a vast array of monsters is nice too." Percy laughed, and I beamed at him.

"Yeah, I find that that's one of Goode's best qualities." He punched me lightly in the shoulder. "I'm glad you're here with me, Sparks."

"Me too." I thought back to last night, and lowered my voice a bit. "Hey, so I got a message from my dad last night…" Percy's eyebrows shot up.

"Oh?" I gave him a look that said _I know_.

"Yeah."

"And what'd the big guy have to say?"

"He gave me this weird warning…"

"What was the warning?"

"He said that there was something waiting for me here, like something big is gonna happen to me." A panicked look came on Percy's face.

"What do you mean, big?"

"I don't think it was bad… but he just said something substantial would happen to me here, and that it would give me the strength to face one of my fears."

"Which fear?"

"I'm not sure." I had a slight idea of what it might have been, but I wasn't about to say it to Percy. See, my father is scary guy, what with being able to shoot people down with lightning bolts. And, though he doesn't have many half-blood children, he's quite busy, so I rarely come into contact with him. But when he does visit me, it's for something important. Percy looked a bit shocked.

"Okay… so I guess this means we're gonna have to be on the lookout after all."

"Yeah." Just then, I heard someone call my name behind me. Percy and I both turned. A little ways down the sidewalk, John was running towards us. Percy made a face for a second, then replaced it with a fake smile. I have to say, John was cute. With his ruffled blond hair and his tall, muscular frame, I could tell why he was reputed to be the hottest guy in school. As he reached us, I smiled at him.

"Hey," he said, a little out of breath. "Um, Sophie, I had a really good time with you in geometry today." I laughed a little.

"Me too. You're actually the first friend I have at Goode." I paused, then, realizing what I had said, reiterated. "Well, second friend."

"I'm sure people will realize how cool you are soon." I laughed again.

"Yeah, I'm sure." There was a bit of an awkward pause. Then, Percy cleared his throat.

"Well, we'd better get-" He was cut off by John.

"Um, hey, would you ever want to, like, get a movie with me or something?" I felt myself blush and stole a quick glance at Percy. He was making a sour face.

PERCY'S POV

_Please say no, please say no_, I thought. For some reason, the idea of Sophie going out on a date with this clown made me want to throw up the blue pancakes I had for breakfast. She looked at me quickly, and I tried to convey that she should not, under any circumstances, go to the movies with John. But suddenly, I heard the words I had dreaded come out of her mouth.

"Sure, John. That sounds good." He gave her a huge smile that I'm sure was meant to dazzle her.

"Awesome. How 'bout Friday at like five?"

"Sounds great," she said happily. At that, I spun on my heel and began walking back home.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you guys so much for the reviews! **

**I thought that last mini-cliff-hanger might be a nice one… haha, I guess I'm just channeling good old Rick! I know this is a big change for the series, but I thought it would be cool to see Percy with another character. **

**I really take your reviews seriously, and so if you have any ideas for upcoming chapters, let me know in the comments!**

SOPHIE'S POV

My encounter with John was surprising, but not as surprising as Percy's reaction. After he began walking away, the happiness I felt over my date with John immediately vanished. I turned around and watched him. I expected him to whip back around, to tell me that it was all just some joke, smile his smile at me, and tell me that he was happy for me. He should be, shouldn't he? After all, we were only friends. She turned back to John, who looked a bit surprised, but was still smiling at me. In a distracted voice, I said, "Um… I'm sorry, but I think- I have to go. I'll see you later." He looked taken aback.

"Oh, um, yeah, okay," he said. I stole a glance back to see how far Percy had gotten. He was almost around the block. I started to run after him, shouting over my shoulder to John.

"Sorry, I'll see you tomorrow!" He smiled and waved after me, still a bit confused. _Me too, _I thought.

"See you tomorrow!" He shouted after me. Percy had managed to make it around the block, but he stood waiting in the middle of the sidewalk, earning a few angry looks from other people walking. He looked shocked at himself. I have to say, I was a little miffed. Why would he just walk away like that? Finally, I caught up to him.

"Hey! What was that all about?" I asked. He still looked really confused.

"I, uh- I don't know. I just kind of… I guess I thought you two would want to be alone." I didn't believe a word he said.

"Oh really?" I said, raising my eyebrows at him.

"Yeah." He hadn't convinced me, but I decided to drop it, if only because I was worried we would wander into territory we weren't ready to explore quite yet. I sighed.

"Whatever you say, seaweed brain," I said. He gave me a weak smile, as if he was grateful not to have to explain his behavior further. I gave him a half-smile in return.

"Come on, Sparks, let's go back to my apartment," he said. "My mom will definitely want to hear about your first day. You know, make sure you didn't summon one of those fun little hurricanes of yours to get out of geometry." I laughed. Things still felt a little charged, but I was glad that things were back to semi-normality, at least for now. As we began walking again, he draped his arm over my shoulder once again, and we talked all the way back to his apartment, as if the moment with John had never happened.

…

PERCY'S POV

Words cannot express how thankful I was that Sophie didn't press for more information on the whole date-with-John-Lockland thing. Frankly, I was actually afraid of what my response would be if she did. I never want to lie to Sophie, and I've succeeded in this so far, but if she had kept after the reason why I walked away like that, I would've had to. It wasn't that I didn't know why I had done it. It was that I knew exactly why I had done it. And that was really scary. Like, scarier than facing the Hydra in that parking lot. Scarier than the prospect of cutting off Medusa's head. Scarier even than being turned into a guinea pig on Circe's island. Gods, I was afraid of what she would say. But she didn't continue with it, so I was relieved. After we got back to my apartment, Sally asked Sophie about how school went (just like I predicted), made a few jokes about us setting it on fire (for me that would be the second time). Then she gave us some blue candy and we went to go do our homework. As usual, upon entering my room, she tossed her stuff to the side and flopped down on my bed. She snuggled into the pillows and shut her eyes. "Mmm, just as cozy as I remember," she said. I laughed and flopped down on the bed beside her. Her eyes popped open and she smiled mischievously, like she had something up her sleeve. She wiggled her eyebrows at me. I groaned and rolled onto my back.

"Oh, I know that look," I said. "Whatever it is, no more lightning-fried bacon. My eyebrows didn't come back for weeks." She laughed, remembering the time she had tried to cook breakfast for me, broke the oven, and tried to fry the bacon with lightning. I had walked into the kitchen as soon as the lightning came down, and the heat had singed my eyebrows off.

"Come on, it didn't look that bad," she said. I raised my newly-re-grown eyebrows at her. She laughed again. "Okay, okay, no more lightning-fried bacon. I just learned this new trick; I can hold things up with air currents…" She wiggled her eyebrows, and I laughed.

"If you're gonna say that you want to hoist me up to the ceiling on an air current, my answer is a resounding no." She laughed.

"No… what if we built a fort? You know, those kinds that we used to build when we were little kids? With, like, blankets and stuff." I put my finger to my chin, pretending to think about it.

"Hmmm… only if you agree to make me king of the fort." She playfully shoved me in the chest, and, laughing, I fell off the bed. She laughed so hard that she had to gasp for breath. Finally, she walked over to where I was lying on the ground and said, "Get up, your highness. We need some blankets." Still laughing, I reached out, pretending I couldn't get up. She rolled her eyes good-naturedly and yanked me up by my outstretched arms. Then, we proceeded to strip the bed of its sheets and blankets. We made a pile on the floor and wandered into the kitchen.

"Sally, do you have any extra blankets?" Sophie asked. Sally looked up from the book she was reading, startled.

"Hmm? Oh, I think there are some in the closet down the hall sweetheart. What do you need them for?" Sophie had already begun down the hall, and shouted back to Sally.

"We're making a fort!" She yelled. Sally laughed.

"Well, just don't make too much of a mess."

"We'll try," I said. Pretty soon, we had amassed about six blankets and three sheets, which seemed sufficient to us.

"Okay, ready to see?" Sophie said to me.

"Definitely." She raised her hands and squinted at the blanket on the top of the pile. Suddenly, it rose up off the pile. "Whoa," I said. I couldn't believe my eyes. She was actually moving the blanket! She made it rise to the ceiling and had it hang there like one side of a tent. She continued to make all the blankets rise, and soon we had a small, tent-like fort. "Soph, that was amazing." She smiled at me

"Thanks, seaweed brain. Now that we have a nice, cozy environment, we can do our homework." She picked up her bag from where she had thrown it, parted the sheet-curtain she had made, and entered the fort, with me following quickly behind. I tossed my backpack to the floor, and as soon as it touched the ground, all the blankets and sheets fell from the air. "Whoa!" I shouted.

"Oh my Gods!" she yelled. Then, we both burst into laughter. We had both fallen down underneath the blankets, and I began crawling towards her, still laughing.

"Soph? Where are you?" I asked between fits of laughter.

"Over here!" she yelled. I crawled in the direction of her voice, and suddenly I stumbled upon her.

"Oof!" she said. We were both tangled on top of each other, laughing. We rolled around a bit, trying to get our bearings, when somehow, I ended up lying on the floor with her on top of me. Her legs were straddling my waist and her hands were on either side of my head. We froze, panting a little. We just stared at each other, the moment charged with electricity. Gods, I really wanted to lean in and kiss her. But suddenly I realized what was happening, and I pushed off the floor. She tumbled off of me. Neither of us was smiling. I was panicked, and she looked shocked and confused. _Is it my imagination, or does she look hurt? _I thought. I shook the thought from my head. "Sorry," I said to the ground.

"It's fine," she replied. "Sorry about the blankets."

"Um, that's okay." We remained in awkward silence for a second. Suddenly, she stood up, disentangling herself from the blankets. I quickly followed her, and when I finally got out of our ruined fort, she was gathering her things. "Where are you going?" I asked, confused.  
>"Um… I have a lot of homework to do, and I really have to focus on it. I just think it would be better if I worked on it alone."<p>

"Oh… really?"

"Yeah… I won't be able to focus if I'm here." She laughed nervously. There was an awkward pause. I lowered my voice.

"You don't have to leave, you know."

"I know, but I think I should. I'll see you tomorrow." In my head, I was kicking myself. How could I be so stupid? She was hurt now, and this was exactly what I was trying to avoid. But why was she hurt? Or was it just that it was awkward now? And isn't this what I had wanted? I was so confused by what had just happened, I couldn't think straight. Before he knew it, Sophie was walking out the door. I ran after her.

"Soph, wait!" She was in the kitchen when she turned around. Oh Gods, she looked upset. Why had he done this?

"Yeah?" she asked in a quiet voice.

"Please stay." I could hear the desperation in my voice, but I didn't care. I just wanted her to stop being upset. I wanted to go back.

"I'm sorry Perce. But I really think I have to go." And with that, she turned and walked out the door. Sally, who had seen this whole scene play out, looked shocked.

"What just happened?" She asked.

"I have no idea," I replied.

…

SOPHIE'S POV

I wiped at the tears that had inexplicably begun falling with the back of my hand. Why was I so upset? I didn't want anything to happen between us… did I? It was just that when I was on top of him, it really looked like he had wanted to kiss me, and I think I had wanted him to! _Oh Gods, what have I gotten myself into? _I thought. It was so… confusing. He had drawn me in with those stupid green eyes of his, and now I… I didn't know what I was. _Maybe things will go back to normal tomorrow. _Yeah, right. As if that would ever be possible with Percy and I.


	3. Chapter 3

**Lots of people have been commenting asking if this is a self-insert. It isn't. As much as I wish I was Sophie, I'm not. I looked up American names that had Greek influences and that name came up. Sorry!**

**Thanks for the reviews, though. I like reading them.**

**This chapter will be influenced by a comment I got from someone, and you'll know who you are. ;) **

SOPHIE'S POV

It had been two days since the incident at Percy's apartment. I'd been avoiding him a bit, hanging out instead with a couple girls I knew from a few of my classes. We had made a bit of awkward conversation. The morning after, he had been waiting at my locker with that pleading look in his eyes, and I did my best to ignore it, instead silently approaching my locker. He tried to get me to talk about it, but I just couldn't. It was too much for me. I couldn't sort out my feelings for him, and honestly, I was afraid to. What would it mean if I liked him as more than a best friend? The prospects were unnerving. So I tried to focus on other things, like my date with John. Tonight was the night. I was excited, I guess. After all, he was very good-looking, and smart, and nice… but the thing Percy had said about him stuck in brain. Could it be possible that John was playing me just because I was the new girl in school and didn't know any better? I had asked Courtney, one of the girls from my ceramics class, and she said that she knew John had gone out with a lot of girls, but she didn't know if he was a player. _Maybe he's just a romantic, _I thought hopefully. It was Friday afternoon, and my excitement was growing for my upcoming date. The clock read _4:37_. Almost time. I gave my hair one last brush, smeared some lip gloss across my lips, and hurried over to the mirror. I was wearing my favorite jeans, a blue long-sleeved tee (it was getting a little cold out) and my beat up converse. I had never been much of one for looks, but tonight I wanted to look cute. I examined myself from side to side, played with my hair a little, and then grabbed my wallet. I headed towards the front hall to wait for John. My mom was in the kitchen with my step-dad, cooking dinner. My mom looked up and smiled at me. "Are you going out with Percy tonight sweetie?" I cringed internally.

"No, not tonight. I'm going to the movies with another friend," I replied. My mom's brow furrowed.

"Which friend?"

"Uh, you don't know him." Again, I cringed internally. I knew as soon as I said it that that was the wrong thing to say. Sure enough, she raised her eyebrows at me.

"Him?"

"Yup."

"Does Percy know?" Now she had lost me. Confused, I replied,

"Of course he knows. Why would you ask _that_?" My mom and step-dad shared a look. "What was that?" I asked. My mom opened her mouth as if to say something, then, realizing she didn't know what to say, turned to my step-dad, silently asking him to explain.

"I think what your mom is trying to say," he said, "is that you and Percy seemed so close lately. We just assumed that…"

"Assumed what?" I asked. "Percy and I have always been close." My mom spoke up again.

"Well, something just seemed… different with you two this year," she explained.

"Mom, Percy and I will never be more than best friends," I said. Under my breath, I mumbled, "He's made that very clear."

…

PERCY'S POV

Friday night had arrived, and I was lying on my bed, tossing a piece of blue taffy up in the air and catching it. It had been two days since Sophie had left my apartment in tears, and I was going crazy. We had had fights before, but this was different. It wasn't a fight. Things were… well, they weren't anything, because she wasn't talking to me. For once, I wished I carried a cell phone around. At least then I could text her. It was the worst feeling, not having her around to correct me or ruffle my hair or smile that cute little half-smile at me. One thought had been circling my head ever since she walked out: Why didn't I kiss her? Or at least _not push her off me?! _That was probably the worst decision I had ever made, and trust me, I have made some major ones. But then I remembered something; tonight was Sophie's date with John. I sat straight up in my bed. I had an idea. It wasn't a very good one, but at least it would force her to talk to me. But what if she was just mad at me? I sighed. I guess that was a risk I was just going to have to take. Maybe this time I'd actually kiss her. Okay, maybe I wouldn't but I'd at least apologize. I hopped off the bed, my determination renewed, and headed towards the door. My mom and her husband, Paul, were sitting at the kitchen table having dinner. My mom looked up at me, smiling. "Where are you going, sweetie?"

"I'm going to see Sophie." Her eyes widened. "What?" I asked.

"Well," she replied gently, "isn't her date with John tonight. I tried to pretend I didn't remember.

"Oh, yeah, I guess it is." She gave me a stern look.

"Percy, you know full well that you cannot just go interrupt her date, especially after what happened on Wednesday." I sighed angrily, feeling impatient.

"Mom, I just want to apologize for what happened, and then I'll leave her alone. Plus, what right does he have to her over me?"

"He's never made her cry."

"Yeah, well, he's never saved her life either, so he hasn't done much of anything." At that, I stormed out of the apartment, feeling unnecessarily angry.

"You have to give her a chance to explore other things, Percy!" Sally called after me, but I didn't care. I was going to see Sophie and that was that.

SOPHIE'S POV

When John finally arrived to pick me up, I beamed at him. He looked good. His navy blue, elbow-length tee made his eyes look brighter and bluer, like the ocean on a tropical island. He didn't seem nervous, which was comforting and off-putting at the same time. He had lots of experience, and I had absolutely none. What if he wanted to kiss me? What if I freaked out like Percy did on me? What if I couldn't flirt with him? _I'm acting ridiculous, _I thought. It was high time to get over my fears. After all, I had faced far worse. After I said goodbye to my parents and promised to be home before eleven, we started towards the theater. It was slightly warmer than I had expected, and it was nice to be with him. He had a strong presence, like he was built to protect people. We made small talk for a little while, but there was nothing really interesting about the conversation. But there was one thing that kept distracting me; I kept hearing footsteps behind us, and when I would turn around, no one would be there. It was strange and put me on edge. _Oh Gods, what if a monster has caught up to me? _I thought. _That would be a fun one to explain. 'Sorry John, it's just that I emit a smell that attracts mythological monsters to me because my dad happens to be a Greek god!' _I pushed the thought from my mind, but I kept hearing those stupid noises. Finally, when I had turned for about the sixth time, John inquired about my strange behavior.

"Is everything alright?" He asked.

"Yeah… it's just I keep thinking I hear footsteps, and then when I turn around no one's there." I replied distractedly. Then, realizing what I must have sounded like, I laughed nervously. "Sorry, I must sound nuts." He laughs too.

"Don't worry, in New York that happens all the time." He says. "There are creepy people all over the place." Somehow, his words did nothing to comfort me. Then, out of the blue, he grabbed my hand. "But don't worry," he said, smiling down at me, "I'll protect you." When he said that, I truly wanted to punch him in the face. I was _not _someone who needed protecting. But, instead of flipping out on him, I just laughed a little and gave him a weak smile. It was then that I saw it. Someone who had been hiding behind the brick wall just across the way tripped and revealed themselves. I immediately recognized the mess of dark hair and a wave of rage crashed over me. He looked up suddenly and gnashed his teeth together.

"Crap," he said.

PERCY'S POV

I grimaced and panic welled up in my chest. This was absolutely _not _how this was supposed to go down. Before I knew it, Sophie was storming across the street, ignoring the honks from various cars, and shouting at me. "Perseus Jackson! What in all the Gods' names are you doing?" She was quickly followed by John who looked confused. Was it my imagination, or did he look a little bit pleased as well? When she finally reached me, I felt like cowering. Even though she was a good four inches shorter than I was, those big brown eyes were filled with rage, and her hands were balled into fists so tightly that her knuckles were turning white.

"Um, I… well, I guess I was trying to…" I trailed off, and she raised her eyebrows angrily, her arms now folded across her chest.

"You were trying to what?" My mind fumbled for an answer. I couldn't tell her the truth, but I knew she could tell if I lied to her. So I decided to go with the half-truth. I sighed.  
>"I just wanted to apologize for what happened on Wednesday. I don't want things to be weird between us, and…" I trailed off again, glancing towards John. I looked at her expectantly, hoping she would ask him to leave. Instead, she just looked at me as if I were the biggest idiot on the planet.<p>

"You wanted to apologize? Really?" She gestured around. "You don't think you could've chosen a better time?" Suddenly, her eyes brightened with recognition. "You followed us here, didn't you?" I cringed in answer to her question. "Gods, Percy, sometimes you are just such a… such a… seaweed brain!" She was really mad now. "I can't believe you! First, you act all flirty and you pretend like you want to kiss me-" She's cut off by John.

"Wait, he tried to kiss you? When did that happen?" He asked. It seemed as if she had forgotten he was there.  
>"Oh, um… it wasn't- I mean, he didn't really…" She trailed off and sighed. "John, I'm so sorry, but I think I need to take a rain check. I have to sort this out." He nods, still looking confused.<p>

"Yeah, yeah of course. I'll um… talk to you at school on Monday." With that, he turned and began walking away from us. Sophie turned back to me. Her voice quaked with anger.

"What could you possibly have been thinking?" Suddenly, her beauty just struck me, and as she was standing there, shaking with rage, it seemed as good a time as any to make up for what I had done. So, I leaned forward and did what I should have done on Wednesday; I kissed her.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hopefully you guys enjoyed that last part… sorry for the cliffhanger! **

**I was thinking that maybe if anyone wanted a character in the story, you could just P.M me? Let me know what you think.**

**Also, I just wanted to mention that in this version of the story, Percy got to camp when he was twelve and it's been five years since then, so both Sophie and Percy are seventeen.**

**Enjoy ;)**

SOPHIE'S POV

It was then that my head exploded. What was going on right now?! Percy had kissed me! After all this time… he had finally done it. And it was… amazing. I hadn't realized this before, but this was really what I had wanted all along. But what were we supposed to do now? _Too much thinking, _I thought. _I just need to enjoy this. _And so I did. I didn't think he had kissed anyone before (after all, he would've told me, wouldn't he?), but he was really good at it. You know how people say that if it's the right person, there'll be fireworks? It was like my father himself had lit up the sky with a billion colored sparks. Then, after a few seconds, we finally both realized what we were doing, and drew back in surprise. "What are you doing?!" I asked. Percy looked just as shocked as I felt.

"I… I just felt like… that's what I wanted to do on Wednesday," he said. My mind was reeling. _That _was what he had wanted to do? _I knew it! _I thought triumphantly. But what had just happened… I couldn't wrap my head around it. I needed to think. I frantically searched his face for a sign that this wasn't a mistake. His green eyes pleaded with me. There was a slight breeze, and it ruffled his dark hair so that it fell across his forehead. His tee shirt hugged his biceps perfectly, and for a second, I couldn't do anything but just look at him in this new way. And then something else took over, and I realized again why I had been so angry at him.

"Percy, you can't just do that!" I shouted. A look of hurt flashed across his face, but I didn't stop. "You can't just go around following me on my dates, and kissing me, and acting like you like me because that's not what you do! I can't… I can't just let this get ruined, I can't lose you. Not again."

"You won't," he said, his voice stretched taut and raspy.

"But I will! If we decide that we want to be something more all of a sudden, and then start dating or whatever, and then break up, do you think we'd still be friends? Do you think we could still be as close as we are, or were at least?"

"But we won't."

"How do you know that?!" I shouted at him, exasperated. I could see he was starting to get angry as well, or at least frustrated.

"Because I love you!" He shouted, now just as exasperated as I was. "I tried to tell you that after I got back from Ogygia, but you wouldn't listen then and you won't now! What do I have to do to make you believe me?" My eyes filled with angry, hot tears.

"But you don't," I whispered. "You think you love me, but that's not what it is." He grabbed my hands in earnest and lowered his voice.

"But I do. I promise you, I do love you."

"Why?" I whispered.

"Why what?"

"Why do you love me?"

"You want me to tell you the reasons why I love you."

"Yes."

"And then you'll believe me."

"Yes."

"I love you because you're my best friend. You understand me better than anyone, and you know how I feel or what I need before even I do. And you're so smart, Soph, you really are. And even though I used to hate it when you corrected me, I kinda love it." I laughed through my tears, and he continued. "I love you because you stand up for what you believe in, no matter what, and you can talk your way out of anything. I can't get you out of my head, Sparks. There's nothing else up there." I laughed again. "It's just you." His eyes twinkled in the dim light of the setting sun, and I forgot all about what would come after this moment. We were set in this singular moment in time, and nothing could disturb us.

"You know something Perce?" I said. He smiled.

"What?"

"I love you too." At that, we leaned in and kissed once more.

PERCY'S POV

We stood there for about a minute, just kissing. It was more intense this time, more passionate. And she felt amazing. Her arms wrapped around me and she smelled like lilacs and mint. Her lips were so soft and she was small, so small, I just wanted to wrap her up and never let her go. But she had other ideas. "Can we go back to your apartment?" She asked breathlessly. I nodded, just as breathless.

…

When we got back to my apartment, she was still gripping my hand as if her life depended on it. All the lights were off, but we didn't bother turning them on. We fumbled through the darkness to my bedroom, where she quickly pulled me towards the bed. We began kissing again, this time even more desperately. I hardly noticed it when we both fell onto the bed. Still kissing, she placed a hand on the back of my neck and pushed my tongue farther into her mouth. She wrapped her legs around my waist, and Gods, it felt good. But I couldn't let her do this if she was going to regret it. "Soph…" I trailed off. I wasn't sure exactly what to say. I mean, it seemed like she wanted to, but… "Are you sure you want to do this?" I asked. She gave me a half-smile.

"I love you, Percy. Of course I want to."

"Are you sure you're ready?"

"Yes. We're old enough, and I want to be with you in that way." I smiled at her.

"Good. I want to be with you in that way too." At that, she pulled me down to her again and we continued kissing. I began kissing along her jaw line, and then down her neck. I heard her sigh a little in pleasure. I continued my path down her body, down her windpipe, along her collarbone, to her shoulder. I stopped and pulled off her top to reveal a black lacy bra. I looked up to her face, and saw she was biting her lower lip. I shook my head a little and smiled, then leaned down to kiss her lips again. She tugged on my own shirt, and pulled it off. Quickly, she snaked her hands down my waist to my jeans. I smirked into her lips. She shimmied them down my hips, and I kicked them off, now only in my boxers. I broke away to whisper in her ear.

"Your turn, Sparks." She giggled at this. I kissed her again, wiggling her pants down her thighs and past her ankles, and tossed them aside. We were now both nearly naked. I began a second trail down her body, and this time when I reached her shoulder, I didn't stop. I kissed down her chest, then unclasping her bra. I leaned back, marveling at her.

"Wow," I breathed. She smirked.

"You're not so bad yourself, seaweed brain." I smirked down at her, then returned to my journey down her belly. When I got to her panties, I pulled them off and continued on my way.

SOPHIE'S POV

All I could think was, _He has to have done this before. _It was like he knew exactly what he was doing, and, Gods, he was good at it. I shivered as wave after wave of pleasure enveloped me. It was perfect. He was so sweet about it too, asking if I was okay when I gasped at the pain. But I assured him it was fine, and soon the pain subsided. He. Was. Amazing. After we had finished the first time, we were both drenched in sweat and breathing heavily. "That was awesome," he had said.

"Oh yeah," I replied. I smiled and turned to him. "Wanna go again?" And we did. Twice more. After that, we were so tired we fell asleep right there.

…

When I woke up the next morning, for a second I forgot where I was. But then recognizing the familiar topography of Percy's bedroom, the memories of the previous night flooded back to me. A grin broke across my face. I turned, looking to see if Percy was still asleep, but all I saw was rumpled sheets. I sat straight up and looked around. He was nowhere to be seen. "Perce?" I whispered. Then I heard some clanging and mild swearing in the kitchen, and smiled to myself. I hopped out of bed and almost made it out the door, when I realized I had no clothes on. Not even underwear. I immediately covered myself, forgetting for a moment that Percy had seen all that was to be seen. But still, I wasn't about to walk out there naked, especially when his mother could walk in at any moment. So I pulled open his closet door, reached for a tee shirt, then pulled it on. Then I rummaged through the mess of sheets that had fallen to the floor and clothes that had been tossed there to find my panties. When I finally found them, I pulled them on and opened Percy's bedroom door slowly, so as not to make a creaking noise. I tiptoed into the kitchen to find Percy scrambling eggs and frying bacon at the stove. He turned and smiled at me as I hopped up on the counter.

"Morning, Sparks," he said. I gave him a wide smile.

"Morning, Seaweed Brain," I replied. Still smiling, he raised his eyebrows at me.

"So last night was…" he trailed off, not finding the right words.

"Amazing," I finished. His smile grew even bigger.

"Yeah." He dropped the spatula he had been holding on the counter and wandered towards the kitchen island, where I was sitting. He leaned against the counter opposite me. "So does this mean I'm, like, your boyfriend now?" He asked, smirking. I smirked back and pulled him towards me by the collar of his tee shirt. I put my hands on either side of his face and kissed him earnestly. I broke away and smiled at him.

"Does that answer your question?" He smiled back and kissed me again. It was at that moment when Sally wandered out of her room. When she saw us, her eyes widened.

"Well, hello you two," she said. Startled, we broke apart and stared at her, our mouths slightly agape. But instead of looking angry, she seemed… pleased. Percy stumbled back awkwardly, his eyes wide.

"Uh, hi Mom." He coughed nervously. "We were just, um…" Sally smirked at him.

"Well, it's about time." We both blushed deeply. I cleared my throat.

"I'm sorry, Sally," I said. She smiled kindly at me.

"What are you sorry for, dear?"

"You're not… you're not mad?" I asked. She waved my question away as if it were a fly.

"Of course not. I've been expecting this to happen for years. I'm surprised it's taken you too this long." We both blushed again, and Percy turned back to me, smiling embarrassedly. I smiled back at him, sharing his embarrassment. I hopped off the counter.

"Well, I should go. My parents will be wondering where I went." Percy's eyes clouded with sadness.

"Do you have to?" He asked.

"Yes." I walked towards him and gave him a small peck on the mouth. "But I'll see you at school on Monday." Percy looked a bit frustrated that I had said Monday, but he smiled at me nonetheless.

"Alright."

It was only after I had gathered my things, left the apartment, and began the trek back to my house when one crucial detail of the night before flooded back to me;

He hadn't worn a condom.


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm really excited about these next few chapters ;)**

**For those who were wondering, Sophie and Percy will go back to camp soon.**

**Thanks for the reviews! Hope you enjoy this chapter.**

SOPHIE'S POV

I froze right there in the middle of the sidewalk. _Oh my Gods_, I thought. How could we have forgotten a condom?! It was our first time, for Pete's sake! Oh Gods. _Well, there's no reason to worry yet. I don't know if I'm… _ I couldn't even bring myself to think it. There was no way. I mean, I didn't even know yet. But I worried. For the rest of the weekend, all I could think was, _how am I supposed to talk to Percy? _I didn't have to tell him quite yet, did I? I mean, I had never kept anything from Percy, but this… this was something completely different. I couldn't sleep a wink Sunday night. I tossed and turned well into the wee hours of the morning, going over and over in my head how I would tell him. Surely he had noticed? I mean, he was there too. Maybe he assumed I was on the pill. Oh Gods. _Well, _I thought, _the best thing to do is not to think about it. I'm not late yet. _

…

Monday morning finally came, and I walked into school with my stomach jumping with nerves. I had tried to mask the bags under my eyes as best I could, but I was no daughter of Aphrodite, and I wasn't great with makeup. When I saw Percy in his usual spot by my locker, I practically threw up. He smiled and waved at me cheerfully. _So he hasn't realized, _I thought. I did my best to smile back at him. As I got closer, his brow furrowed. "What?" I asked when I finally reached him.

"Are you alright?" He asked. I tried to smile at him. I was grateful for his concern, but as you can probably guess, I wasn't too psyched to talk about why I looked like crap.

"Yeah, of course. Why?" I asked.

"Well… you don't look like you got much sleep." My stomach dropped.

"Oh, um, yeah, I was just having… nightmares." I felt so bad for lying to him, especially since he looked so concerned. He wrapped his arm around my shoulder.

"I'm sorry. But you're okay." He smiled at me. "You've got me." A wave of relief crashed over me. That was right. I had him. I smiled and stood on my tiptoes to kiss him.

"I'm so glad." I said after I finished kissing him. He smiled one of those million-dollar smiles, and I felt better.

"Ahem." Someone cleared their throat behind me. I whipped around to see John standing there. Color rushed to my face. He didn't look happy.

"Oh! Hi John!" I said quickly. John sneered a little.

"I knew he was into you." I sighed.

"I'm so sorry John. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. It's just that Percy and I have known each other for so long-" He cut me off.

"Spare me. Just remember, he was the one that stalked you, not me." With that, John spun on his heel and walked away. Behind me, I heard Percy snicker. I turned around and smacked his arm. He pretended he was hurt.

"Ouch!" He said playfully, still smirking.

"Don't laugh!"

"I'm sorry, but you have to admit, that guy was a total ass." I sighed.

"Yeah, okay." He wrapped his arm around me.

"Come on Sparks. We've got better things to think about than that jerk." Boy, was he right.

…

PERCY'S POV

The month after Soph and I started dating was the best of my life. At first, she seemed a little nervous, and a lot of the time, she would be wary of making out or doing anything of that sort, but after a little while she got over her nerves and the days were blissful. We hadn't had sex since that night, but I was okay with that. Just being with Sophie was great, and we had so much fun with each other that most of the time sex wasn't even part of the equation (although I have to admit, I thought about it a lot). I couldn't have been happier. That is, until one afternoon in November, about a month and a half after the night we started dating. I was lying on my bed, trying to figure out my history homework, when the phone rang. Sally picked it up and I wasn't really paying attention to the conversation until I heard her name. "Sophie, sweetie, what is it?" My ears perked up at this. I got that prickly feeling in my chest that I got whenever I knew something bad was going on. I hopped off my bed and hurried to the kitchen.

"Mom, what is it?" I mouthed. She covered the receiver of the phone and mouthed,

"It's Sophie." Then, speaking to Sophie, she said, "Sweetie, are you all right?" I heard Sophie's voice on the other end of the phone. Sally nodded. "Okay, okay, here he is." She handed the phone to me, her eyes filled with worry. "It's Sophie," she whispered. "She seems very upset." My heartbeat quickened and my stomach did a somersault. I quickly took the phone and rushed to my room, shutting the door behind me.

"Soph, what is it?" I asked, my heart racing. On the other end, I heard her sob. "Sophie, please, tell me what's wrong."

"Can you come over?" She asked, her voice muffled with tears.

"Of course. I'll be right over." She took a shaky breath.

"Okay." I hung up the phone. I felt sick. What could it be? Did something happen? _Please, Father, don't let her be hurt, _I thought. I tossed the phone onto my bed and raced into the kitchen. I began pulling on my jacket as quickly as I could.

"Percy, is Sophie alright? She sounded quite… distraught on the phone," Sally asked. I gulped, zipping up my jacket.  
>"I'm not really sure. I'm going over there now to find out." She nodded, and I raced out the door. I ran all the way to Sophie's. When I finally arrived at her apartment, I was out of breath. I wrapped on the door.<p>

"Soph?" I called. "You in there?" I heard footsteps in the apartment, and my fear grew. "Soph?" I called again. There were more footsteps, then someone shouted from inside the apartment.

"Come in!" It was Sophie. I turned the knob, my hands shaking. I was deathly afraid of what I would find inside. I was surprised to see that nothing seemed awry as I entered the apartment.

"Soph?" I called out.

"In here!" She called from the bathroom. I ran to the bathroom door and pressed my ear to it. All I could hear was water running, and then the sound of someone throwing up in the toilet. \

"Sophie? Are you alright?"

"Um… just come in." Her voice sounded choked. I heard the toilet flush, and I opened the door to find Sophie on the floor of the bathroom, her eyes red-rimmed and puffy. There were tear tracks on her cheeks. I quickly sat down on the floor opposite her.

"Soph, what's the matter? Did you just throw up?" She nodded shakily, and a tear slid down her cheek. I immediately wrapped my arms around her. "Just tell me what's going on and I'll make it better." This only made her cry harder, and I immediately felt worse. "Please, tell me what's wrong." It was then that I noticed something on the floor next to her. Two somethings, actually. I reached over and picked them up. When I realized what they were, my head swam. _Oh Gods, _I thought. I couldn't blame her for puking. The two things in my hand were positive pregnancy tests. I looked up at her, panicked. Tears were streaming down her face.

"We forgot a condom," she said. I felt as if I was about to hurl myself.

"W-what?" I asked, my voice choked.

"That night. You didn't put a condom on." Suddenly I remembered. I had forgotten to put on a condom before we had sex for the first time. I closed my eyes.

"Oh Gods." _How could I be so stupid? _I thought. Sophie's lower lip trembled.

"I realized the morning after, but I didn't think I would actually get pregnant, and I didn't want to scare you," she said. I gulped, nodding. I understood. "But then I was late," she continued, "and I figured it was the stress from not telling you. But then I hadn't gotten my period for three weeks, and so I bought a test, and then another one so I could be sure." At this, she let out a sob. I hugged her to me, though I didn't feel much better myself.

"It'll be okay," I said, although I really felt like crying myself. I couldn't seem to wrap my brain around this.

"But Percy… I'm… I'm pregnant," she said. And that was when it hit me. She was pregnant. All I could do was hug her to me, rub her back, and say,

"I know. It'll be alright. We'll figure it out." I kept repeating that, not so much for her benefit anymore, but for my own.


	6. Chapter 6

**So, I've had a request to add a new character to the story… you know who you are! **

**I hope you guys like it **

SOPHIE'S POV

Wow. That was the only word coursing through my brain when I saw the results of the second test. And then the tears came. Not slowly, with one tear turning to many, but all of a sudden, a sob burst out of me, and then I was crying like a… well, baby. Oh Gods. When Percy came over, I could barely choke out the words to tell him. I really thought he was gonna freak. Like, all the pipes would burst and flood the apartment. But he was being surprisingly calm. For a few minutes, all I could do was sob into his shoulder. Then, realizing that we had to deal with the situation, sat up, wiping my eyes. He looked… panicked. His eyes were stable, but nothing else about him was. He kept licking his lips, and his hands kept twitching, as if he were fumbling for something. "Perce… we need to deal with this," I said. "Like, now. Because…" At this, I looked down at my belly. "I can't really wait." He gulped and nodded.

"Yeah. Yeah, you're right." His glance also shifted down to my stomach. Then, he did something unexpected. He smiled, and a choked laugh burst forth from his lips. For a second, I panicked. _Is he having a panic attack? _I thought. Then, he looked back up to me, and took my hands in his. "I know this seems crazy, but…" He smirked. "I'm actually a little excited." My head spun. He was taking this _way _better than I had expected. But then a grin broke through the frown that furrowed my brows, and I realized something; underneath all the fear, all the panic, all the awful nausea, I was excited too. It was really soon, but… for some reason it just felt okay. Like everything would work itself out. But if it was actually going to happen, we needed protection. I couldn't exactly fend off monsters in this condition.

"Perce…" I started.

"Yeah?" His eyes were full of concern. I smiled a little at him.

"I'm excited too," I said, and happiness flooded his eyes again, if not a little clouded by nerves, "But I think we have to do something first."  
>"Anything."<p>

"I think we have to go back to camp." A grin spread across his face.

"I was hoping you'd say that." At this, another cry escaped my mouth, this one from relief and slight nerves. He smiled, and then continued. "But there's one thing we have to do even before that."

"What is it?" I asked. He hesitated a bit, and then spoke up.

"I hate to say it, but I think we have to tell our parents." A new wave of realization crashed over me. Of course. I hadn't even thought about that. But it was inevitable. This would be the first challenge we faced as parents-to-be, and I prayed to the Gods that it would go well. 

… 

We started off with Sally. We walked into the apartment holding hands and were greeted by an eager Sally, who was waiting at the kitchen island, drumming her fingers on the countertop. She smiled upon seeing us together, and we took seats across from her. Percy audibly gulped. Panic was creeping into my brain once again, worrying about what her reaction might be. My hand trembled in his, and he squeezed it in reassurance. My fears subsided for a bit. We were together, and that was all that mattered right this minute. Sally smiled at us. "I'm glad to see that you're alright, Sophie. What was the matter?" Her eyebrows were furrowed with concern, and this made me dread telling her even more. I cleared my throat.

"Well," I started, "that's kind of why we came to talk to you." Her eyebrows furrowed deeper.

"Oh?"

"Yes." Fear welled up from the pit of my stomach, and suddenly, feeling an acidic taste in my mouth, I rushed to the bathroom and promptly threw up. I heard Percy run after me, quickly followed by Sally. He knocked gently on the door.

"Soph, are you okay?" Percy asked.

"Um… yeah," I answered weakly.

"Oh, dear," I heard Sally say, "Does she have some kind of stomach flu?" Percy sighed.

"No Mom. Sophie…" he trailed off. "Sophie's pregnant." I froze. Okay. We had told her. She would react how she would react. I could practically hear the tension between Percy and his mother.

"I see," I heard her say. "Do you know how far along she is?"

"Um… about one-and-a-half months, I think." I heard Percy say. He sounded shocked. I couldn't blame him. I was too.

"Alright," she said. She sighed. "Well, I'm sorry that it happened this quickly. Zeus knows this is _not _the best time for you two to have a baby." _We're going to have a baby, _I thought. _Wow. _She continued, "But I can't think of two teenagers better equipped to be parents. Have you made any preliminary plans?" She asked. Percy, clearly still shocked, said,

"Um, well, we think that it would be best to head up to camp. This is something Chiron will have experience with, and he'll know what to do next," he said. I got up, my knees cold from the tile of the bathroom, and opened the door. Percy and Sally both looked at me with concern.

"I'm alright. I think it's just… midday sickness, or something." Sally laughed, surprising us all.

"It's morning sickness, dear," she said.

"Oh. Morning sickness, then." Percy smiled weakly at me and slung his arm around my waist. I leaned into him, suddenly exhausted. "I'm sorry, Sally. I had no idea that… this would happen," I said. She waved me off.

"A child is never a mistake, sweetheart. An accident, maybe…" At this, we all smiled, and she continued, "but a happy one nonetheless. You'll find out when this one plays out." We smiled at her gratefully, and after a few hugs, we headed to my apartment to tell my parents, who freaked a bit, but ultimately decided that there was nothing that we could do about it now, and agreed that the best thing for both me and the baby would be to go to camp. So, with everything decided, we separated briefly to pack and Iris-message Grover that we would be arriving at camp that night, and met back at my apartment a few hours later. Percy smiled when he saw me. Smiling back, I grabbed his hand, and, happy to be on our way back to camp, we walked quickly to Percy's mom's old, beaten-up Camaro. When we got everything stowed away, we hopped into the front seats, Percy driving, me in the passenger seat. And we were off to camp.

…

PERCY'S POV

I hadn't been in this old thing since my mom had driven me to camp for the very first time. After she had broken up with Smelly Gabe, she had kept it (for reasons unbeknownst to me), and it still smelled of stale tobacco and seven-layer dip, even after five years. I shook my head to rid myself of those memories. Now, I reached across the console to put a hand on Sophie's belly. She looked startled at first, but then, realizing what the gesture was, she smiled at me and put her hand on top of mine. Something welled up in my throat. Despite myself, I was really excited at the prospect of having a kid. Sure, it was fast, but hadn't everything in my life been at the same pace? After only a few weeks at camp, I had been thrust into my first quest with a girl I hardly knew and a guy I had just recently found out had hooves. Those turned into my best friends. So it seemed fitting that my relationship with that same girl would progress at the same speed. We barely spoke the whole ride, instead listening to my mom's old Indigo Girls records and just enjoying each others' company. For a little while, Sophie fell asleep, but about a mile away from camp, she woke with a start. I glanced, nervous, at her. "Are you alright?" I asked. She nodded, licking her lips.

"Yeah… for some reason, I just felt… weird, like I was jerked awake," she said. I frowned.

"It's probably just being close to camp. We're about a mile away." Suddenly, all of the fear I had previously seen on her face vanished. She grabbed my hand in excitement.

"Almost there," she breathed. I gripped her hand. I was excited too, especially coming bearing this news. I was really excited to tell Grover, Tyson, and Thalia. Hopefully Thalia would be back at camp. I had Iris-messaged her earlier, telling her we were going to come, and she had said she would try to be there, but she was still away with the Hunters of Artemis. Then, we turned the corner and suddenly, the rusty, old Camaro was creaking its way up Half-Blood Hill. Sophie bounced a little in her seat. A spark flew off her fingertip and shocked me a bit.

"Ouch, Sparks!" I said, yanking my hand away.

"Sorry, sorry. You know how I lose control of the sparking when I'm excited. I turned to smile at her. She beamed back at me. We parked at the base of Thalia's tree, and Sophie immediately hopped out of the car, not pausing to even stretch her legs before bounding across the force field to camp. I grinned and charged after her. We ran all the way to the Big House. When we finally arrived, we were both winded. Chiron suddenly emerged onto the porch, clip-clopping his way towards us. Smiling, he reached his arms out and Sophie stepped into his embrace. She hugged him tightly. He had always been like a second father to her, and since she had begun at camp when she was only six, she and Chiron had a very close bond. After they finished hugging, Chiron turned to me.

"Percy, my boy! How are you?" He asked. Nodding, I said,

"Good, good." Chiron nodded in return, and then turned to face both of us.

"What brings you two to camp?" We glanced at each other quickly, briefly sharing a bit of nervousness at the prospect of telling Chiron our news. Sophie spoke first.

"We came seeking medical council, Chiron," she said. His smile faded, and the features on his face contorted into a frown.

"Whatever for, my dear?" he asked. She gulped.

"I seem to be… I'm pregnant," she said. Chiron's eyebrows shot upwards.

"You two…" he trailed off. I nodded.

"Yes," I said.

"How long ago did this happen?" he asked.

"About a month and a half ago," she filled in. Chiron nodded slowly.

"I see. Well, I was wondering how long it would take you two to finally get together. I can't say I was expecting _this, _but I guess it isn't the worst thing that could happen," he said. I broke into a weak smile, and then quickly turned serious once again.

"We were wondering," I started, "is there anything we should start doing? For the… baby?" Chiron nodded once again.

"Well, the child will be a legacy, so they will have similar powers to both of you, but lessened. And as with most demigod pregnancies, there will be some irregularities, so you won't be able to go to a mortal doctor for your prenatal care. You should stay here at camp until you deliver, and then it is up to you whether to go or stay. But before all that, you should get checked out by an Apollo cabin member." Sophie and I nodded.

"Is anybody awake?" Sophie asked. Chiron squinted in thought.

"I believe Kelbey and Will are doing the rounds in the infirmary. Kelbey should be able to help you. She has exhibited quite a talent in the field of obstetrics." We nodded again, and, joining hands, we hurried off the porch in search of Will and Kelbey.


	7. Chapter 7

SOPHIE'S POV

The metal was cold beneath me, but I tried to keep still as Kelbey checked me out. Percy held my hand, and when I glanced up at him, he smiled. When she finished, she gently pushed my knees together, took off her gloves, threw them in the trash, and then turned to smile at us. We were in the infirmary, and Kelbey had just done my first prenatal check up. Will stood nervously in the corner, biting his thumbnail. Kelbey had asked him if he wanted to do it, considering he knew us better, but he just shook his head, still shaken from the news. I sat up, and Percy moved his hand to the small of my back. "So, Doc," Percy asked, "how's the little guy doing in there?" Kelbey laughed.

"The baby's fine. It's got all its fingers and toes, if that's what you were wondering," she said. A wave of relief washed over me. I had been a little worried that, considering the abnormality of the situation, the baby would have some… abnormalities of its own. I cleared my throat. There was still something on my mind.

"I was wondering…" I started, "Chiron said something about… strange things happening during demigod pregnancies? Is there anything that I need to be… cautious of?" Kelbey's face hardened a bit.

"Well, obviously the combination of two of the major gods' powers could be a bit dangerous. Your child could exhibit powers from either end of the spectrum, either completely Zeus-like or completely Poseidon-like, but the most likely scenario is that he or she will have powers somewhere in the middle- some from one of their grandparents, some from the other. But that's not necessarily a bad thing. It just hasn't happened in… a while," she smiled. "You two certainly are one in a million." We turned to each other and smiled. But she wasn't done. "There will also be some irregularities with your pregnancy. For one, your morning sickness will most likely be lengthened. Instead of stopping at the third or fourth month, it could stretch into the seventh month." I gulped. Constant puking for seven months? That was not something I was looking forward to. My stomach churned at the thought. "Another thing- your child will grow at a faster rate than most normal fetuses." My eyes grew wide with visions of me looking like I had swallowed a beach ball. _Oh Gods. _

"What do you mean?" I asked tentatively. Kelbey hesitated.

"Well…" I could feel Percy growing impatient.

"Just tell us. Please," he said. Kelbey sighed.

"The thing is… your child will most likely not have the gestation period of a normal human baby." I swallowed, but she continued. "That's not necessarily a bad thing. But you just have to be prepared for a little-" I cut her off.

"How long will it take?" I asked.

"About five to six months. You'll also develop more quickly due to this, so if you choose to do any research-" At this, Percy snorted. He knew me too well, but I nudged him in the ribs. That shut him up. I smiled up at Kelbey, who smiled back weakly. "If you choose to do any research," she continued, "just keep in mind that everything that happens during your pregnancy will be expedited. Except, of course, for your morning sickness."

"Is that all?" I asked, trying to lighten the mood. She laughed.

"Yes, that's all."

"Thank you so much for your help," I said. "I was a little worried after listening to Chiron." She laughed again.

"Yes, well, as you know, Chiron has a tendency to see all the bad in a situation. But you have a healthy baby." She looked around suddenly. "I just need to find some of those vitamins…" She walked over to a cabinet and rifled through it. Several things fell in the process, but eventually she pulled out a small blue plastic bottle, looking pleased with herself. "Here they are." She walked back over to us and handed me the bottle. Inspecting it, I turned the bottle over in my hands. It had no label, just about twenty yellow pills in it. They looked quite large. Internally, I grimaced. "Take one of these twice a day. When you need more, just come back to me, and I'll give you some." She smiled at me. "And good luck." I smiled back.

"Thank you again." We started to get up and leave when someone spoke up.

"Guys?" It was Will. I had almost forgotten he was there.

"Yeah?" Percy said. Will chewed on his lower lip.

"Are you sure about this?" Percy sighed.

"I know it seems fast, but…" He trailed off.

"Something just feels right," I finished for him. He turned to me and gave me a weak smile.

"Exactly."

…

PERCY'S POV

After leaving the infirmary, Sophie and I decided to take a walk down the beach. It was beautiful this time of night, the wind blowing off the water, the moon reflected in the waves. I glanced up at the stars, noticing Orion's constellation. Another man who had fallen for his best friend. I shivered. _Not the same thing, _I thought. As I held her hand, my heart filled with happiness. My wish had finally come true. We were out of harm's way (for now at least), and we were together. The breeze brushed her hair back gently, and some of the blonder parts of her hair shone in the moonlight. As she turned to smile at me, the stars made her eyes twinkle, and all I could think of was, _this is the most beautiful girl in the world. _Gods, I hoped the baby had her genes. And right there, in that moment, I realized that anything to come couldn't compare to this. And I believed that we could make it. We could survive all battles, and we would be a family.


	8. Chapter 8

**Sorry for the late delivery of this chapter! I may have had a tiny bit of writer's block... but I hope you enjoy it!**

**I know you guys think it's been going a little fast, and I agree, so I'm gonna try and slow it down in the next few chapters.**

**Enjoy ;) xxx**

PERCY'S POV

In the hours after our visit to the infirmary, the news had really sunk in. We were going to have a baby... and sooner than expected. I was excited, I guess, but I was also apprehensive. I don't know what I would do if I had to see Sophie in incredible pain again, and that situation was looking more and more likely. Plus... I wasn't sure that I knew how to be a dad. What if my son or daughter hated me? Or what if they got hurt, and it was my fault? A few months ago, I didn't know whether or not I should have told Sophie if I liked her, and now... now we were preparing to be parents. It was all... a lot to handle. But I needed to be strong, be an anchor for Sophie. I turned over in bed, seeing her lying there peacefully, her long eyelashes brushing her cheeks, her lips slightly parted, and this sight instantly calmed me down. I sighed quietly, trying my best not to wake her, and smiled a little. Everything was going to be okay. It might be a little expedited, but we could handle that. As softly as I could, I brushed a stray strand of auburn hair off her forehead. Her skin was silky smooth and felt cool beneath my fingertips. I moved a little closer to her, brushing my lips against her forehead. Her eyes fluttered open. I smiled at her, and she smiled back dreamily. I could tell she would fall back asleep any moment, but I didn't mind. She snuggled into my chest and wrapped her arms around my torso. In return, I wrapped mine around her waist and pulled her closer to me. I rested my chin atop her soft head and closed my eyes. As usual, we were all we had. Suddenly, a shocking realization struck me: it wouldn't be that way for much longer. Soon, we would be a real family. Well, a larger one at least. It was then that another thought came to me: if we were going to be a family, why not make it official? I smiled widely, because I had just come up with the best idea ever.

...

After breakfast the next morning (and two quick pit stops to the bathroom for Sophie), I told her I had to go talk to Chiron about new training methods for the winter, and headed to the Hephaestus cabin. I was whistling as I walked in, which drew some strange looks, but all I could do was grin. Nyssa approached me, smiling. "Percy! What brings you to our humble abode?" she said, speaking up over the sounds of machinery coming from the workshop.

"Well, I have a pretty crazy idea, and I was wondering if you could help me out?" I asked. Nyssa raised her eyebrows.

"Ok," she began hesitantly, "but only if it doesn't involve another one of those revolving ballistae." I laughed.

"Don't worry, it's much more exciting than that." She sighed, but shook her head good-naturedly.

"What do you need, Perce?"

"Can you guys possibly make..." I hesitated, but only for a second. "A ring for me?"

...

SOPHIE'S POV

It had been a very pleasant day, albeit quiet. There weren't many campers around since it was only early December, and Percy had been running around with Chiron and Will all day to set up some sort of training program. It had all seemed a little strange to me, but I guess that was just the... pregnancy hormones. It still felt weird to use that word to describe myself. Weird, but good. I was trying to tidy up the Zues cabin (unusual for me, but it wasn't like I had anything else to do) when Percy crept through the heavy doors. He grinned at me, leaning up against one of the pillars. I wandered over to him, smiling, and he pulled me into his arms and kissed me. Gods, it felt so good to kiss him. He broke away (much to my chagrin) and beamed at me. "So, Sparks..." he started.

"So, Seaweed Brain," I replied.

"I was thinking that maybe tonight we could have dinner together?" he asked. I laughed.

"I don't know if you realize this, but we have dinner together every night." I said.

"I know, but I was thinking maybe we could have something a little more... private tonight." I looked up at him, surprised, and he smirked at me. That little smirk always took my breath away. I reached up and brushed a lock of dark hair out of his face, smiling back at him. I stood up on my tiptoes and kissed him lightly. I broke away, leaning my forehead against his.

"I'd love to," I said. At that, his grin grew wider.

"Great," he said, uncoiling his arms from my waist. He began walking towards the doors. "Meet me at the top of the hill overlooking Strawberry Fields at 6:00!" He continued.

"I'll be there," I replied. When he left, I felt a bit... odd. In a good way. I had a good feeling about tonight.

...…

PERCY'S POV

I stood at the top of the hill, anxiously waiting for Sophie to arrive. I shivered a little, though not from cold (because of the controlled weather, it was still a balmy 72° inside Camp Half-Blood). I was really nervous. Excited too, but really, really nervous. I was wearing the tee shirt I had worn the night we got together, the green one, and jeans. I kept reaching down to play with the little box in my pocket, opening and closing the miniature latch. It was a beautiful box, wooden and carved with mythological scenes. Then, I saw a figure come up over the hill. The sun was setting, and the rich, golden light spilled in behind her, reflecting off her hair and eyelashes. As she got closer, my smile grew wider. She looked beautiful. She was wearing her Camp Half-Blood tee shirt, a pair of beaten-up ripped jeans, and her lucky converse with the little lightning bolts all over them. When she finally reached me, she leaned in immediately to kiss me. I enjoyed it so much that I almost forgot that we had dinner waiting. I broke away (with some trouble), and smiled at her. I pulled out the chair at the table behind me, and gestured for her to sit down. "Your table, my lady." She raised her eyebrows at me, but sat anyway. I quickly sat across from her, my anticipation growing. I cleared my throat, fondling the clasp of the box, but she spoke.

"Wow, Perce, this all looks so amazing," she said. I smiled shyly.

"You think so?"

"I really do." I cleared my throat again.

"So, I've been doing some thinking, you know, about us," I started. She nodded, her smile gone. _If only you knew, _I thought. "And how we're going to be a family. And I've loved you for..." I stopped, feeling a small lump in my throat. I cleared it again. "For a long time, and I'm so excited that we're going to have a little guy soon." She smiled. "And I just... I love you so much, and I've wanted to be with you for so long. I just want to be with you for all eternity." Her face flushed, and I could see tears in her eyes. I moved to get out of my chair, catching the table cloth a little. But I caught myself, and finally, I bent down in front of her. She gasped and bit her lip. "So, Sparks, I have a question for you. Will you... will you marry me?"


End file.
